Tesla vows to repay government loan in half the required time

Despite admitting to being financially hurt by the recent New York Times controversy, Tesla's CEO Elon Musk is confident that his company will be able to repay the Department of Energy (DoE) loan in 5 years rather than 10. Will they be able to pull it off? Well, so far it hasn't been a good idea to bet against Musk.

CEO Elon Musk said Tesla plans to pay off the $465 million federal loan in five years, rather than 10 years. Musk made the comment Tuesday at a summit on energy innovation, where he appeared on stage with Energy Secretary Steven Chu and defended the Obama administration's clean energy program.

Noting the firestorm of criticism aimed at the Energy Department after the bankruptcy of solar company Solyndra, which received a $528 million federal loan, Musk said it was only fair that the administration wins praise for success stories such as Tesla. He said the company is on course to earn a small profit this quarter. (source)

Tesla Motors made its first payment of nearly $13 million in December. A second payment is due in March.

Despite admitting to being financially hurt by the recent New York Times controversy, Tesla's CEO Elon Musk is confident that his company will be able to repay the Department of Energy (DoE) loan in 5 years rather than 10.